Beth Hegedus's Blog
Beth Hegedus's Blog
Suburban Snapshot
send to a friend | print | comment
Suburban Snapshot hangs with Rob McCord
PHILADELPHIA—As a lifelong Republican and a current committeewoman, attending a Democratic fundraiser was another first in my political life.
So I had no idea what to expect when I attended a fundraiser here for state Treasurer Rob McCord, hosted by IBEW Local 98.
The fundraiser Wednesday night was at Octo Waterfront, the former Rock Lobster on Delaware Avenue. I walked in a little bit shy—yes, this reporter occasionally gets timid when it’s not a group she doesn’t know. The first person that said hello to me was Joseph Waters, Jr., a local municipal court judge. We had met at other events, so he wasn’t a total stranger.
After that, I introduced myself to John Sabatino, a name I’ve known from my years of reading the Philadelphia Public Record. I knew he was a ward leader for 30 years and well-known attorney. The rest of the mostly Democratic crowd was affable and charming.
Suburban Snapshot had a chance to talk to McCord himself. I asked him about the upcoming 2010 elections.
“It’s way too soon to think about candidates,” he said, even though everyone is doing just that. “What I’m focusing on at this moment is how I can help my constituents find more public money. I want to help improve the economic situation. Luckily, I’m not part of the paralysis that is going on in Harrisburg.”
Pat Gillespie, head of the Building Trades, warmly welcomed McCord, who then thanked the man who made the event happen, Bob Henon, Local 98’s political director. City Controller Alan Butkovitz and Supreme Court candidate Jack Panella also briefly graced the stage.
For my first Democratic event, it was a fun and informative time. And yes, there were some Republicans in the audience. But I made a lot of new friends from the other side. They were friendly, and we had some engaging conversations.
Harrisburg take note: Republicans and Democrats can work together. You should try it!
August 20, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Tags: Rob McCord
Leave a Reply
pa2010.com blogs
pa2010.com Central
Middle Ground
Left of Centre
The New Commonwealth
Blue Steel
Purple in Pennsylvania
The BlueBlast
The PA GOP Pulse
Suburban Snapshot
Red in a Sea of Blue
- in 60 days, 1 hour, 42 minutes, 5 seconds
The Latest from @pa2010news
- Error: Unable to access Twitter at URL (http://www.twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/pa2010news.json?count=3). Verify service status. (HTTP code 401.)
Stay connected with pa2010.com:
advertisement
advertisement
mergatroyd
Aug 20th, 2009
Didn’t know what to expect? It’s a political fundraiser, just like the Republicans hold. We don’t sacrifice goats or sheep for God’s sake.
Rene Tetro
Aug 20th, 2009
Beth,
Your last paragraph was telling and well put, and it really says it all.
The gridlock in our state government is due primarily to Democrats and Republicans in Harrisburg trying to do what is right for their respective parties, not what is right for their constituents. It is an ideological turf war that should be abandoned in favor of a cooperation that recognizes the needs of the state trump the needs of the party.
We need our lawmakers to be more pragmatically and less ideologically driven. You are right, Beth, Republicans and Democrats can work together…if they want to.
Rene’